Tag Archives: corporate governance

Democratizing the SEC — to Address Sustainability

Sea Change Radio Host Bill Baue talks with Adam Kanzer of Domini Social Investments about the new SEC Investor Advisory Committee, on which he represents the socially responsible investing (SRI) community.  SEC Chairman Mary Schapiro established the committee as one of her first initiatives after taking the helm of the Commission in 2009.  In the NewsAnalysis, Sea Change Headlines Anchor Tania Haldar Hart discusses conservative backlash against the interpretive guidance the SEC recently issued on requirements for companies to disclose risks from climate change.

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8 Loopholes in Corporate Reporting

See Sea Change Co-Director Bill Baue interview Sanford Lewis of the Investor Environmental Health Network about its new report in a video —  8 Loopholes: Corporations and the Investor Crisis of Confidence — co-produced by Sea Change Media and IEHN.  You can also listen to a press briefing about the report, which links the history of companies hiding known asbestos risks to human health and to their financial health with the lack of disclosure on the parallel risks documented today on nanotechnology.

Justice in the Environment

jimboyceleslielowe

Jim Boyce of the Political Economy Research Institute (PERI) at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst talks about the new report, Justice in the Air.  It looks at EPA data showing that the toxins spewing from company smokestacks hit minorities and the poor hardest.  And Leslie Lowe of the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility talks about Chevron’s refusal to disclose the $27 billion liability it faces in a court case happening in the Amazonian rainforests of Ecuador.  The company is accused of dumping toxic oil byproducts from years of drilling, damaging the environment and the health of residents.

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Empowering Citizens To Protect Their Local Community

steveviedermanLongtime shareowner activist Steve Viederman discusses the notion of community governance, where communities reclaim democratic power of self-determination from corporations and other external forces.  Exemplifying community governance is the Fair Trade Towns movement, where communities commit to supporting Fair Trade commodities such as coffee and cocoa.  Read the show transcript

Closing the Climate Feedback Loop

Lars Klüver
Lars Klüver
Colin and Carrick McCullough
Colin and Carrick McCullough

Lars Klüver of the Danish Board of Technology talks about the World Wide Views on Global Warming project he directs that will gather opinions of everyday citizens in 45 countries globally in September 2009 to feed into negotiations at the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP15) in Copenhagen in December 2009.  And Colin and Carrick McCullough of OurRenewableNation.org talk about their “cross-country eco-video adventure” where they will visit, video, and interview folks advancing sustainability solutions — as well as everyday folks on their thoughts about climate change and this shift toward renewable energy.  Finally, this week’s Sea Change ViewPoint comes from Nell Minow of The Corporate Library with commentary on first steps on toxic assets.

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ViewPoint: Nell Minow with First Steps on Toxic Assets 

 nellminowNell Minow was dubbed the “queen of good corporate governance” by BusinessWeek.  With Bob Monks, she co-founded The Corporate Library, a Portland, Maine-based corporate governance research firm.  In this week’s Sea Change ViewPoint, she proposes first steps on toxic assets.

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The Mindful Path to Sustainability

stephaniekazaStephanie Kaza links buddhism and sustainability in her new book, [amazon-product text=”Mindfully Green: A Personal and Spiritual Guide to Whole Earth Thinking” type=”text”]1590305833[/amazon-product].  Sea Change Co-Host Francesca Rheannon covers coal protests at the Mount Tom Power Plant in Holyoke, Massachusetts, where she interviewed local activists Glen Ayers and Tina Clarke.  And finally, this week’s ViewPoint comes from Business for Social Responsibility CEO Aron Cramer, who proposes three corporate reforms.

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ViewPoint: Corporate Reform -The Bigger Picture

aroncramerCorporation 20/20, an organization promoting alternative corporate structures, just announced the Second Summit on the Future of the Corporation, slated for this June in Boston.  Discussion amongst those who attended the first Summit in November 2007 was abuzz about the future of boards of directors. In the broader press, fingers are pointing, primarily at the banking industry as the culprit and at outrageous executive pay.  As accurate as these points may be, the troubles run deeper and wider, according to  Aron Cramer.  He’s CEO of Business for Social Responsibility (BSR), a  global nonprofit network of businesses focused on sustainability, and he’s on the convening committee for the Future of the Corporation Summit.  In this week’s Sea Change ViewPoint, Cramer calls for more structural reforms.

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ViewPoint: EFCA – A Human Rights Imperative

arvindganesan

In January 2009, Human Rights Watch issued a briefing paper entitled Employee Free Choice Act: A Human Rights Imperative.  The paper details some of the glaring deficiencies in current US labor law that significantly impair the right of workers to freely choose whether to form a union.  It recommends that the US Congress pass the Employee Free Choice Act to help remedy these shortcomings and bring US law closer to international standards. Arvind Ganesan, Director of Business and Human Rights at Human Rights Watch, brings us this week’s ViewPoint.Read the show transcript

ViewPoint: John Harrington Seeks Economic Security from TARP Banks

johnharrington

Late last year, Harrington Investments President John Harrington filed shareholder resolutions at banks that received billions of taxpayer dollars under the Trouble Asset Relief Program.  Congress bailed out the banks because they are essential to the stability of our economy, so the resolutions ask for board committees to oversee US Economic Security.  Ironically, Citigroup and Bank of America have petitioned the SEC for permission to ignore the resolutions.Read the show transcript